Ergonomic Factors Can Be Used to Improve the Work Environment
Daylight, colours and music can be used dynamically in the workplace to provide safety, productivity, mood elevation and psychological wellbeing (Kroemer and Grandjean, 1997). In contrast, the misuse of each of these can hinder performance on work tasks as much as it can elevate performance. For example, individuals prefer daylight to artificial lighting and therefore may opt for wide windows at a high position to evenly illuminate a room. However, although this may be an advantage, in summer it is possible that such windows will radiate extra heat from the sun, if positioned in a southern direction. In addition, the opposite may occur in winter when the window surface becomes cold and as a result, lowers the room temperature (Kroemer and Grandjean, 1997). Hence, it is important to make the necessary evaluations of pros and cons before making a decision based solely on the pleasant effects of daylight (Kroemer and Grandhean, 1997). This paper will attempt to evaluate how one would attempt to make the work environment more pleasant with regard to daylight, music and colours.
With regard to daylight in an indoor workplace, there are rules which apply to achieve the maximum potential daylight possible with regard to the positioning of windows, the size of windows, the use of window blinds and the colours used in the room itself, to name a few (Kroemer and Grandjean, 1997). Skylights in the roof of a building or fanlights in walls of single story buildings, lofts and attics or other areas with insufficient light are useful in providing adequate lighting (Kroemer and Grandjean, 1997). There are ergonomic guidelines for fitting skylights depending on the position they will be fitted onto. For example, skylights fitted onto the sloping part of a roof provide quite a high amount of daylight, however, they may increase the risk of glare and give a relatively low ray of light for people working in the middle of a room (Kroemer and Grandjean, 1997). Factory buildings are often lacking windows which are compensated with artificial lighting and air-conditioning which, in its favour, can be cost-effective when the walls are properly insulated (Kroemer and Grandjean, 1997). In contrast, some argue that as a result of the confinement in such buildings, workers may feel removed from the outside world. A study by Juslenm Wouters and Tenner (2007) explored workers productivity in a Finnish factory work setting where workers were given their own lighting system to enable them adjust the light setting as they preferred at their workstation. The results showed that workers had particular light preferences which they took some time into setting accurately. Also, giving the workers their own lighting system did increase productivity, however, conclusions were drawn with care as it was unclear whether the attribution came about as a result of better lighting, psychological or biological effects (Juslen et al, 2007).
Colours have many four main functions